In recent years, speeding-up of an image formation processing of a silver halide photographic material has been desired. However, when the processing speed is increased, processing time required for an achromatic reaction of dyestuffs or sensitizing or desensitizing dyes contained in the light-sensitive material or an elution of these dyestuffs or dyes from the light-sensitive material cannot be ensured thereby causing a problem in that residual colors originated from these dyestuffs and dyes become remarkable.
Hitherto, a discoloration efficiency has increased by making these dyes water-soluble, or a processing solution has been improved for increasing the discoloration efficiency. More specifically, known procedures for reducing the residual color include (1) a method of adding a water-soluble stilbene compound, a non-ionic surface active agent, or a mixture thereof to a developing solution, (2) a method for destroying dyes by treating a photographic element after bleaching and fixing with an oxidizing agent, and (3) a method for using, as a bleaching bath, a persulfuric acid bleaching bath, as described in Research Disclosure, Vol. 207, No. 20733 (July, 1981). However, these methods are not sufficiently effective when a degree of the residual color is high, and also these methods are not suitable, in particular, to a rapid processing for discoloration since they do not positively accelerate a desorption of the sensitizing dyes and an elution process.
Further, the increase in the water-solubility of dyes causes problems other than the residual color, for example, a decreased sensitivity or an increased variation in the sensitivity with a passage of time.